Under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 any individual over the age of 18 years has the legal right to refuse food and/or fluid. The Act assumes that a person has mental capacity to make their own decisions to refuse food and/or fluid unless it is established they lack that capacity.

IRC suppliers monitor detainees' attendance at mealtimes and keep records of those detainees who have not attended. The reasons for non-attendance are followed up after 24 hours. This information is reported daily to Immigration Enforcement staff at each centre who update a food and fluid refusal escalation log of all cases that have reached the 48 hour point (food refusal) or 24 hour point (fluid refusal). The log also records detainees who have resumed eating and /or drinking in the previous 24 hour period. Detainees who are refusing food and / or fluids are closely monitored by healthcare professionals.

Competent individuals (i.e. those that have been assessed as having mental capacity) are considered to be engaged in a food and/or fluid refusal when they fail to partake in scheduled meals for a period of 48 hours (for food) or 24 hours (for fluids), and have not been confirmed as eating food and/or taking fluid from another source (i.e. items purchased from an IRC shop) and have stated that their reasons for not eating or drinking is as a result of a protest or other grievance.

Editors note: All the data on this page, from Freedom of Information requests to the Home Office

Number of Individuals Recorded as Refusing Meals in Immigration Removal Centres January Through December 2019

Q4 2019

October

November

December

Brook House

Campsfield House

Colnbrook

Dungavel

Harmondsworth

Morton Hall

Tinsley House

Yarl's Wood

Q3 2019

July

August

September

Total

Brook House

Campsfield House

Colnbrook

Dungavel

Harmondsworth

Morton Hall

Tinsley House

Yarl's Wood

Q2 2019

April

May

June

Total

Brook House

Campsfield House

Colnbrook

Dungavel

Harmondsworth

Morton Hall

Tinsley House

Yarl's Wood

Q1 2019

January

February

March

Total

Brook House

4

2

0

6

Campsfield House

Colnbrook

6

2

15

23

Dungavel

0

0

0

0

Harmondsworth

13

18

24

55

Morton Hall

4

2

2

8

Tinsley House

2

2

1

5

Yarl's Wood

0

3

2

5

102

Number of Individuals Recorded as Refusing Meals in Immigration Removal Centres January Through December 2018

Q4 2018

October

November

December

Brook House

1

1

2

4

Campsfield House

0

6

0

6

Colnbrook

0

2

2

4

Dungavel

0

1

1

2

Harmondsworth

2

0

8

10

Morton Hall

4

3

1

8

Tinsley House

0

0

0

0

Yarl's Wood

1

1

2

4

8

14

16

38

Q3 2018

July

August

September

Total

Brook House

1

0

1

2

Campsfield House

0

1

0

1

Colnbrook

2

4

4

10

Dungavel

0

0

0

0

Harmondsworth

6

12

8

26

Morton Hall

3

4

2

9

Tinsley House

0

0

0

0

Yarl's Wood

0

0

0

0

12

21

15

48

Q2 2018

April

May

June

Total

Brook House

11

7

9

27

Campsfield House

0

0

0

0

Colnbrook

5

6

3

14

Dungavel

0

0

0

0

Harmondsworth

6

9

6

21

Morton Hall

1

0

2

3

Tinsley House

8

0

1

9

Yarl's Wood

0

0

1

1

31

22

22

75

Q1 2018

January

February

March

Total

Brook House

2

2

1

5

Campsfield House

3

2

7

12

Colnbrook

8

13

13

34

Dungavel

0

0

4

4

Harmondsworth

7

11

13

31

Morton Hall

0

2

1

3

Tinsley House

0

0

1

1

Yarl's Wood

26

23

39

88

46

53

79

178

Number of Individuals Recorded as Refusing Meals in Immigration Removal Centres January Through December2017

Q4 2017

Q4 2017

October

November

December

Brook House

16

3

7

6

Campsfield

3

2

0

1

Colnbrook

12

5

6

1

Dungavel

1

1

0

0

Harmondsworth

35

4

22

9

Morton Hall

5

2

1

2

The Verne

2

2

0

0

Tinsley House

2

2

0

0

Yarl's Wood

69

22

15

32

145

43

51

51

Q3 2017

Q3 2017

July

August

Septem

Brook House

143

30

43

70

Campsfield House

4

1

1

2

Colnbrook

8

5

2

1

Dungavel

3

0

2

1

Harmondsworth

18

2

5

11

Morton Hall

3

2

0

1

The Verne

8

3

2

3

Tinsley House

5

2

1

2

Yarl's Wood

74

29

23

22

266

74

79

113

Q2 2017

Q2 2017

April

May

June

Brook House

133

69

44

20

Campsfield House

4

3

0

1

Colnbrook

17

5

3

9

Dungavel

1

1

0

0

Harmondsworth

20

12

2

6

Morton Hall

7

1

3

3

The Verne

4

0

2

2

Tinsley House

12

0

0

12

Yarl's Wood

83

24

30

29

281

115

84

82

Q1 2017

Q1 2017

January

February

March

Brook House

207

53

69

85

Campsfield House

8

3

2

3

Colnbrook

9

6

1

2

Dungavel

3

0

1

2

Harmondsworth

11

6

0

5

Morton Hall

4

3

1

0

The Verne

2

1

1

0

Tinsley House

Closed

Closed

Closed

Yarl's Wood

85

22

25

38

329

94

100

135

Number of Individuals Recorded as Refusing Meals in Immigration Removal

Q4 2016

January

February

Brook House

83

24

30

Campsfield

1

0

0

Cedars

Closed

Colnbrook

52

25

21

Dungavel

2

2

0

Harmondsworth

20

2

5

Morton Hall

15

4

7

The Verne

6

1

1

Tinsley House

Closed

Yarl's Wood

76

24

22

255

Centres January Through December 2016

Q3 2016

July

August

September

Brook House

66

23

23

20

Campsfield House

6

2

1

3

Cedars

0

0

0

0

Colnbrook

10

4

3

3

Dungavel

6

1

4

1

Harmondsworth

35

8

11

16

Morton Hall

12

2

4

6

The Verne

9

6

2

1

Tinsley House

35

17

10

8

Yarl's Wood

39

19

7

13

218

Q2 2016

April

May

June

Brook House

67

25

32

10

Campsfield House

7

3

3

1

Cedars

0

0

0

0

Colnbrook

7

0

4

3

Dungavel

1

0

1

0

Harmondsworth

56

11

34

11

Morton Hall

14

5

3

6

The Verne

7

1

2

4

Tinsley House

30

9

14

7

Yarl's Wood

82

23

23

36

Total

271

Q1 2016

Jan

Feb

March

Brook House

100

36

40

24

Campsfield

11

4

2

5

Cedars

0

0

0

0

Colnbrook

14

6

3

5

Dungavel

0

0

0

0

Harmondsworth

23

2

4

17

Morton Hall

16

3

4

9

The Verne

3

0

2

1

Tinsley House

20

8

4

8

Yarl's Wood

66

19

20

27

Total

253

Number of Individuals Recorded as Refusing Meals in Immigration Removal Centres October/November/December 2015